Valve unit for player pianos



W. A. WATSON VALVE UNIT FOR PLAYER PIANOS Filed April 24l 1928 Aug. 25, 1931.

`2o minimum the amount 35 drag.

*'50 usedand at the same Patented Aug. 25, y 1931 WILLIAM A. WATSON, F NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT VALVE UNIT FOR PLAYER. PIANOS Application led April 24,

tegral structureof metal, so that they may be readily and cheaply manufactured and at the same time be readily assembled with the windchest of the'instrument to provide a device which will be eicient in operation.

It is obvious that it is desirable to keep to a of air that must be exhausted or drawn into the exhausting device when a player pneumatic is collapsed. As prior to the collapsing of the pneumatic the air must bedrawn from the valve chamber, which is in communication with ,the pneumatic, it is desirable that this valve chamber be as small as possible` consistent with the other factors which must be taken into consideration. It'fis also obvious lthat it is necessary to provide a pouch or valve operating pneumatic which shall be of sutlicient size to have the required power to operate the valves quickly and snappily without appreciable One kobject of my invention, theretore, is the provision of a combined valve chamber and pouch chamber, such that the valve chamber will be reduced in size with relation to the pouch chamber, whereby the amount ot air which mustbe drawn from the valve chamber will be lreduced to a minimum.4

Another object of my inventionris to provide a combined pouch chamber and valve chamber, tioned that the valve chamber is of smaller diameter than the pouch chamber, whereby a relatively large pouch pneumatic may be time, the air which .through an opening 14 at the back of the wherein the parts are so propor- 192s. serial No. 272,470.

mustbe exhausted from the valve chamber Will be kept to a minimum. d

Another object of my invention is to provide an integrally formed unit, which will comprise both a valve chamber and a pouch chamber, and having an exterior shoulder which may be lodged against the wind chest.

Another object of the invention is to provide a communicating pouch chamber and valve chamber separated by a partition, formmg a valve seat member, the partition being adjustable to regulate the position of the seated valve.

To these and other ends, the invention consists in the novel features and combination oi parts to be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the'accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a sectional view of a wind chest, valve unit and player pneumatic embodying ymy invention;

Fig. 2 isa side elevational view of the valve unit detached from the wind chest;

Fig. 3 is a front elevational view of the parts shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional view of the valve unit. y I have shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings. a wind chest 10, which may be supported in any suitable manner, having mounted there- S0 on a junction box 11 in which are joined the parts'12 and 13 of the tracker tube. The lower end of the tracker tube is inserted wind chest.

At thelower side of the wind chest is secured a striker' pneumatic 15, being held in place by means of a screw 16, inserted through an extension 17 upon the bottom wall of the wind chest. v j

Upon its front side the wind chest is provided with a plurality of openings 18 through which arefinserted a part of each of the valve units, designated as a whole by the re-ierence character 19. d

These valve units, as shown more particularly in Figs. 1 and 4, comprise a pouch chamber 20 and a valve chamber 21, the pouch chamber 2O having an opening 2Oa through the side wall thereof, whereby one side of a pouch 22 within the chamber 2O is exposed to pressure obtaining?, within the wind chest. On the other side of the pouch 22 is a chamber Q3 with which he traclrer tube communi- Cates, and the pouch is provided with a bleed opening 2l, the bleed openingr being` constituted by an opening through the riveted eyelet which secures the valve stem follower 24a to the pouch.

The valve unit, as previously stated, is integrally formed from a single piece of metal, and it will be noted that at the junction of the valve chamber and pouch chamber the wall of the unit has been displaced outwardly, and thereafter the two folds pressed together to forni a two-plv annular shoulder or nge 25 which proj ects from the unit. As shown in F el, the valve chamber lies to the left of this shoulder, and it is reduced in diameter with respect to the pouch chamber. That is, the enter al slioulr er is of Feater dimension at the left-hand side thereof than at the right.

A. partition Q7, forming a valve .seat membor, is inserted into the unit and lodged against the inwardlv projecting portion of the shoulder 26. This member is cup-shaped in form so as to provide an annular fla] fe 2S, which lies against the side 'wall of the pouch chamber. At its central portion it is provided with an opening Q9, a guide member 30 for the valve stem 3l. upon white are mounted the valves 3Q and 33, the former controlling the opening;a :29 and the latter controlling' an atmospheric inlet opening at the left-hand end of the valve chamber. lt will be noted that ,his -partitien while sliov-,f'n as lodged against the internally projecting` part of the shoulder 2G, may be moved to the richt to any desired extent and secured in place bj; brazilie', soldering, or '.ie like so as to adjust the position of the seated valve. 'he position shown is, of course, the extreme Vlefthand position of this member. lf it desired to place it in a position to the right of that shown, a suitable spacing' device such as a washer or the like may be placed against the shoulder and the valve seat member lodged against the washer.

It will be observed that the shoulder 526 projects outwardly to a` considerable extent, both from the pouch chamber 20 and the valve chamber 2l. .as shown in Fig'. l` who the unit is inrerted in the openmo in the wind chest, it enters as far as thi boulder which lof1 s against a washer il between this shoulder an4 wind chest, so as inalie nection. will l may thas be lv, and at the effectively se. pouch chamber cnt desired extent so that tirely therewithin and the pouch chamber will 'ez-:posed to the wind chest pressure.

The valve chamber is provided with a thimble or the like through which it communicates with the interior of the striker pneumatic l5, by means of a collar 37, which is secured to the pneumatic and telescopes over the thimble 36.

The valve unit is pressed against the wind chest by means ot the lugs 83 and 39, which may be tightened down by the nuts 40.

lllhile l have shown and described a preferred embodiment of my invention, it will be understood that it is not limited thereto in all of its details, but is capable of modification and .f'ariation within the spirit of the inve ition and within the scope of the appended claims.

lVhat l claim is:

l. i valve unit comprising a hollow body, the side wall of the body, at a point intermediate its ends, being folded outwardly to provide an external flange and then folded inwardly to extend beyond the base of the flange and provide an internal shoulder, and a partition lodged against the internal shoulder dividing the interior of the body into a pouch chamber and a valve chamber.

2. A valve unit comprising a hollow body, the side wall of the body, at a point intermediate its ends, beiner folded outwardly to provide an external :flange and then folded inwardly to entend beyond the base of the flange and provide an internal shoulder, and a partition lodged against the internal shoulder dividingV the interior of the body into a pouch chamber and a valve chamber, and the valve chamber being small in cross-sectional area relatively to the pouch chamber.

3. A valve unit comprising a hollow body having' a continuous side wall extending from end to end thereof, the wall heilig folded outwardly and then inwardly at a pointintermediatc the ends` and the folds beine; pressed tofrether to form an external flan extendin round the body, and one of the folds beinfT extended inwardly to form an internal shoulder, and a valve seat lodged against said shoulder.

4. ln combinati on, a wind chest having an opening therein, a valve unit comprisinr a pouch chamber, and a valve chamber having an external shoulder formed thereon, with the pouch chamber disposed at one side of said shoulder, and said pouch chamber being mounted in the opening in the wind chest with the shoulder lodged against the edge of the opening.

5. A valve unit, comprisingv a pouch chamber ana a valve chamber having integral side walls, and an externally projecting shoulder formed at. the junction of said chambers, and a wind chest having an opening in which the pouch chamber is mounted, with the shoulder lodged aga-inst the edge of the opening and from end to end thereof, the wall being dis there being an opening through the side wall i of the pouch chamber where thereof is in communication chest. f

6. A valve unit comprising a hollow body having a side wall extending continuously y the interior with the wind placed outwardly at an intermediate portion of the body and then folded inwardly to form a two-ply externally projectingeflange, the part of the wall folded inwardly greater area than that folded outwardlyyto form an internal shoulder, and to effect a reduction of cross sectional area in that part y of the body beyond said fold. n

7. A valve unit comprising a pouch chamber, the wall of said pouch chamber being folded outwardlyat the upper end of the chamber to form anl external shoulder,ythen folded inwardly beyond the chamber wall tofform an internal shoulder, and then continued in a longitudinal direction to form a valve chamber reduced in cross sectional area relatively to the pouch chamber.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my day of April, 1928.

hand this 21st n WILLIAM A. WATSON. 

